I do not own any characters or ideas from Pirates of the Caribbean. I'm just borrowing them. Enjoy!
'There she is, sweetie. Can you see? What do you think?'
The huge ship came into view, its white sails billowing, contrasting against the grey clouds. She was 'The Magnificenté', and she really was just that. Magnificent.
'Papa, it's so big!' The little girl shrieked in delight. She scrambled over the wet rocks for a better look.
'She's so big, darling. A ship is a 'she', not 'it',' the young man watched his daughter fondly. He shouldn't really have brought her up here while the rocks were wet. He knew his wife, Rebecca would probably scold him most severely if she ever found out. 'Be careful on the rocks,' he called out. 'They're treacherous. If you fall there'll be no hope at all for you.'
He seized the seven year old's arm to pull her back a bit. He startled her and she yelled, dropping her small knitted doll. She watched in dismay as it fell over the rocks and landed on a ledge, just out of reach. The young girl began to cry.
'Shh, sweetie, I'm sorry,' her father soothed. 'Not to worry, eh? We'll have it back in a second. Wait here. Do not move.'
Slowly and carefully, he approached the edge of the slippery rocks. She watched on, her eyes wide.
'Papa, no. Come back. Don't fall.'
'It's alright, sweetie. I can see it. I'll get it for you.'
'No!'
It happened so quickly, it was a wonder how the girl saw it at all. She leapt forward as he slipped, grabbing his scrambling hand. She gritted her teeth as she fought to hold on.
'Sweetie, keep hold. Whatever you do, don't let go, alright? I'm going to pull myself back up.'
She nodded, her eyes squeezed shut. Rain was falling everywhere. Time had stopped. His feet were searching aimlessly for some sort of foot hold. He could do it. He could reach the top. He lodged his feet in a crevice and reached for the top.
Instantly, the rocks under his feet shifted and he fell. He heard her screams, saw her hands flailing hopelessly.
She saw his face, etched with horror, his eyes locked with hers. She was screaming. She watched him fall, down, down to the jagged rocks below.
Then there was silence. Water was lashing down. Was it rain? Or her tears? She didn't hold on. She didn't hold on and he fell. He told her to hold on.
'Papa!' The little girl sobbed. She looked up through the rain. The ship had gone. Frantically, she stared around at the cliffs. To her left there was a bit of a slope down to the bottom. It didn't look quite as steep. If she was careful she might make it down to him. Perhaps he was alive. She had to check.
Moving cautiously, she made her way slowly down the rock face, clinging to every edge she could reach. Numerous times, her feet would slip and they'd scramble, trying to find somewhere safe. Her heart was pounding in her ears and she couldn't see. She didn't know how far it was to the bottom but, after what seemed like a million years, her feet found the solid ground.
She straightened up and looked around. Her father was lying motionless a few feet away and she stumbled over to him. Kneeling beside his broken body, she reached out.
'Papa,' she whispered. 'Papa, wake up.' She pushed at him desperately, willing him to move, breathe, give any signal that he was still living. He did nothing. 'Papa, please, wake up. I'm frightened. Please, Papa.' She felt the tears pouring silently down her cheeks, landing on his arm.
She flung herself onto his stomach, her face in her folded arms, sobbing uncontrollably. It was her fault. Her papa was dead. It was all her fault.
'Papa,' she moaned through her cries. 'Wake up. Wake up. Wake up.'
'Wake up, wake up, Shannon.'
Shannon's eyes snapped open. Cold sweat covered her body and she was shivering. That had happened so many years ago, so why did it still affect her? She lay still but then felt something shove her.
'Shannon, wake up!'
'What!' She rolled over to come face to face with her best friend, John. She groaned. 'What is it?'
'You need to get up. We're running late. Work. You've got to go to work.'
Shannon peered at the window. She really didn't feel like getting up to go to work. 'The sun's barely up,' she grumbled. 'Wait a minute, how did you get in here?' She had no family. Her mother had died of grief, a year after her husband had fallen from the cliffs on the edge of the town. Shannon had lived with her nanny until she had also died, when Shannon was fifteen. She had lived alone for ten years, earning a living from her job as a delivery girl for the local bakery.
John looked at his feet, smiling guiltily. 'You wouldn't answer the door when I knocked. It was either knock the door down or pick the lock.'
Shannon rolled her eyes at him. 'I'm beginning to wish I'd never taught you how to do that,' she yawned. 'Alright, I'm up. Wait outside, I'll be out soon.' John left and Shannon stood, changing from her thin nightgown to her plain dress. It really had seen better days. Everything of hers had. But she couldn't afford anything better. She barely earned enough to keep her tiny home and to feed herself. She wouldn't complain. So she opened the door and rejoined John, ready to start her day.
